


Navel Gazing

by KaworuMakino



Series: Eiji Thirst Week 2020 [4]
Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: M/M, Piercings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-18
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25861843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KaworuMakino/pseuds/KaworuMakino
Summary: Day 4 - piercings/jewelry. Kong can do piercings, Ash thinks Eiji's stomach is cute, and Eiji has an idea.
Relationships: Ash Lynx/Okumura Eiji, Bones/Kong (Banana Fish)
Series: Eiji Thirst Week 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1876594
Kudos: 82
Collections: Eiji Thirst Week 2020





	Navel Gazing

"Tea's ready!" I exclaimed happily as I walked into the living room, carrying a tray with a teapot and four green porcelain cups. The teapot had an intricately painted mother bird on it and the cups each had a smaller chick. The set was a handmade wedding present from my mother that had left me speechless and confounded as to whether I could actually use them or if I should set them up on display just to look at. 

"Thanks, Eiji!" A chorus of voices responded. 

Ultimately I'd decided that it was a waste to let such lovely things collect dust. I was using the set for the first time, and what better occasion than this? Alex, King, and Bones were all sitting on the living room floor, smiling up at me. I set the tray down on the rattan table in the middle of the room and joined their circle around it. Comfortably re-situated with my friends, I started filling up cups and passing them around. 

"You sure we're not cramping your style, Eiji?" Bones asked with a frown. 

"...Huh?" I furrowed my brow and looked around. Kong and Alex had guilty expressions as well. 

"I think what Bones means is...," Alex said, pausing to take a sip of tea before continuing. "Aren't couples supposed to go on honeymoons after they get married? Instead you and Ash have everyone and their mother around, taking up space in your apartment. We feel bad because you two haven't gotten any quality time together since the ceremony."

"Pfft," I laughed into my cup. "Ash's whole first year in Japan was our honeymoon. You're not intruding at all, we're both really glad for the company. Besides, like you said, we got plenty of quality time the night of the ceremony."

Alex, Kong, and Bones all stared at me, mouths slightly open. 

"What?" I asked. 

Faint blushes descended upon all their faces. 

"What is—ack!" I clamped my hand over my mouth. "Get your minds out of the gutter, you filthy Americans!" This time it was my turn to blush, and profusely. 

"Aaanyway," Alex sighed, trying to shift gears. "What do you wanna do while we're still here Eiji? Anything we can help you with?"

"Not in particular. I'm just glad to get to see you," I said. 

I looked around at my friends and noticed Bones's ear, bringing a memory from the prior day back to mind. I'd seen Kong pierce the ear himself, and now Bones was wearing small silver circular jewelry. A hoop, I thought it was called. 

"Oh! Kong...so you do piercings?" I asked. 

He grinned. "Yep! I started learning not long after you two left. Most of the guys now, if they have jewelry, that was me."

Bones tilted his head to show off his earring. "Doesn't he do a good job?"

Kong blushed and Bones nonchalantly leaned over to give him a peck on the cheek. The entire gang was gay, it felt like. Maybe except for Alex? I'd never actually seen him voice attraction for anyone, woman or not. Pushing that thought aside, I focused back on the conversation at hand. 

"Yeah, it looks good," I said. 

Bones looked very pleased. 

"Could you...would you..." I stammered. Was this a normal thing to ask one's friends to do? Kong did say he'd pierced some of the other guys as well, so... "Would you maybe...do one for me?"

"Oh?" Kong asked. "I didn't know you were interested in body mods."

"I didn't either," I said honestly. It was all very spur of the moment. "I just saw you do Bones's and the thought came to mind."

"I'll hook you up," Kong smiled. "What kind do you want?"

"Wh...what kinds are there?" I asked. Now I felt silly. I knew next to nothing about piercings. 

"Well I can do your ears," Kong said.

Bones smiled, eternally proud of his (I assumed?) boyfriend's work. 

"Maybe? Depending what else there is," I said. 

"Would you want your tongue done?" Kong asked. 

I shook my head. I was already going out on a limb and the idea of having something jangling around in my mouth sounded too invasive. 

"Snakes bites are probably a no, too," Alex commented. 

"S...snake bites?" I asked. 

"Your lips," Bones said, tugging at the outer corners of his mouth. "People usually get them in pairs."

I shook my head. "That sounds way too intense for me. What else can you do?"

"There's nose piercings. A bit more in-your-face than an ear, but not as much as mouth jewelry," Kong said. 

I thought about it, but so far the ear sounded best. How tame, though...

"If you want to really surprise Ash then you could get your nipples done," Bones joked. 

"Yikes!" I exclaimed. My chest felt sensitive at the very thought of it. Granted, it was already pretty sensitive after the way Ash and I had started our day...

"Prince Albert's are absolutely out of the question then," Alex said. 

I shook my head. "I don't even want to know what that is."

"I don't do those anyway," Kong said. "Hmm...there's not a lot else, but I can do navels. Or eyebrows. An eyebrow would probably look good."

But my attention was more perked up by the mention of navel piercings. Ash had told me he thought my stomach was cute on multiple occasions. It always made me feel a bit embarrassed, but...maybe he would like it. Plus, I could cover it up easily so I wouldn't need to worry about weird stares or my sister teasing me. 

"Maybe, um...maybe we could do my belly button?" I asked. 

"Really?" Kong asked. "Didn't figure that was what you'd go for, but sure. We'd need to go out and buy a ring first, though."

"You know any places, Eiji?" Alex asked. 

"I've never been, but...I think there's a shop in a strip mall about twenty minutes from here. It always looked very...intense, and I never went inside."

"Sounds perfect," Bones said. "Let's do it."

* * *

And so the three of us headed out and began walking to the piercing parlor. We had plenty of time. Ash would probably be out with Max and Ibe-san until shortly before dinner, so that left us with a couple hours to pick out jewelry, head back home, and have Kong do the actual piercing. 

When we walked into the shop the door creaked loudly and I was immediately struck by all the glass cases. Upon closer inspection they were filled with all sorts of jewlery: studs, large circular pieces that I assumed people used for gauges, slender bars, circular rings like Bones's...

"Hello," a shop attendant greeted us. "What can we do for you today?"

"We're looking for some belly button rings for our friend," Alex said. 

"Right this way," the worker said, leading us over to a set of cases toward the right corner. I peered inside. 

Most of the jewelry looked like curved, elongated silver with various colors on the ends. Reds, pinks, blues, greens...I assumed they were all gems of some sorts. Then there were other pieces that had hanging pendants. I saw a Superman logo, a Pikachu, Hello Kitty, a bird...

I looked closer at the bird. It was big and yellow and looked cartoony. I didn't love how it looked, but the color struck me. I searched back over the standard bars and found one with what looked like a carved yellow gem at the end. 

"Um...this one, I think," I said, pointing at it. 

"Sure thing," the attendant said. 

I went to pay but Alex stopped me, then ignored my protests. Shortly we were walking back home and I carried the jewlery in a small baggie. 

"Thanks Alex," I said.

"No problem. Just make sure you take me to a shop with some of that tentacle porn I've heard so much about before we leave."

"Dirty American!" I snapped. 

Alex laughed. Bones and Kong laughed. I laughed. Not much later we got back to the apartment and Kong told me to take off my shirt. He prepped me for the needle that he was about to shove through my skin. I tried not to look down, feeling anxious. 

"Don't worry, Eiji. It doesn't take long," Bones reassured me. 

"Okay," I mumbled. 

"You ready?" Kong asked. 

I nodded. "Go ahead."

And then—

OUCH!!!

—and then it was over. It had been a literal stabbing pain but already it was over and though the spot felt sore it was nothing like that pinprick of a moment. 

After about another minute Kong looked up at me and said, "Alright, all done. What do you think?"

I looked at my reflection in the screen door to the balcony. There I was, with yellow and silver jewelry in my tummy. At least, that was what Ash called it when he tickled and teased me about how cute it was. 

I blushed. "I like it. Thanks, Kong."

"No problem, Eiji." He then gave me a tube of aftercare solution and explained what to do from thereon out, though he would also still be around for a bit longer and could check out how it was healing. 

"Whatcha wanna do till Boss gets back?" Bones asked once Kong finished getting me settled. 

I ended up teaching Alex, Kong, and Bones how to play mahjong until Ash arrived with Max and Ibe-san. We went out to dinner with them before coming back home and just watching TV for a while with the guys. Once it was bedtime we said all our goodnights and I joined Ash in our bedroom. 

"Hey baby?" I asked. 

"Yeah, Eiji?" Ash turned to look at me as he took off his shirt. 

I took mine off and grinned. 

Ash's mouth dropped. "Kong?"

I nodded. "What do you think?"

"You look really cute," he said, wrapping his arms around me and pressing a soft kiss against my mouth. 

He then tickled my stomach lightly, I laughed, and we proceeded to have some of that quality time the boys had been so concerned about earlier.


End file.
